This collection is composed primarily of project drawings and photographs, extensive personal and professional correspondence, Neumann's writings and unpublished research materials, student artworks, travel photographs, papers related to Neumann's faculty positions and group memberships, and publications related to his projects. Notable correspondents include: Andre Bloc, Yona Friedman, Sigfried Giedion, Jean Ginsberg, Walter Gropius, Zvi Hecker, Le Corbusier, Berthold Lubetkin, Man Ray, William Muschenheim, Moshe Safdie, Jose Luis Sert, and Eldar Sharon. Most correspondence is written in German, French, English, or Hebrew. The bulk of the material dates from the 1950s and 1960s and concerns projects and research undertaken in Israel.

Biographical / Historical Note

Alfred Neumann (1900-1968) was a Czech-born architect with an international career. Most of his major projects were executed in Israel; his earlier work consisted mainly of private residences for Czech clients, as well as commercial and residential architecture undertaken with various firms or government bodies in Paris, Berlin, Algiers, and South Africa. Neumann devoted a substantial portion of his career to teaching and to research into architectural morphology, theories of proportion, polyhedral structures, and architectural space as pattern. He taught at both the Technion (Israel Institute of Technology) in Haifa, and the Universite Laval in Quebec. He participated in CIAM (Congres International d'Architecture Moderne), Groupe Espace, and other architectural groups throughout his career.

Restrictions

This collection is available for use by appointment in the Department of Drawings & Archives, Avery Architectural and Fine Arts Library, Columbia University. For further information and to make an appointment, please call (212) 854-4110 or email avery-drawings@libraries.columbia.edu.